With so many subscription video streaming services available today (Netflix, Hulu, Disney+ and many more), it’s easy to run up a big monthly bill for your TV viewing. However, there are a growing number of free video streaming services available.
Below are seven of the best free video streaming services you should check out.
How do free video streaming services work?
Free video streaming services cost nothing to watch because they are ad-supported. This means you have to sit through the occasional advertisements (which you can’t quickly skim through), but in return you don’t have to sign up for anything or give your credit card number to anyone. whether it be. The programming isn’t as fresh as with paid services, but if you like watching old TV shows and movies, these services are a good option.
Most of these services offer a mix of TV series and movies. Most offer on-demand programs that you can click and watch at your own pace from start to finish. Many offer “live” streams of programming, organized into channels and displayed in a traditional channel grid. All are constantly changing their lineup, so what’s available today might not be available next week.
You can find these services on most streaming media devices, such as Amazon Fire and Roku boxes and sticks, as well as most smart TVs. You can also watch on your smartphone or tablet or in your computer’s web browser.
What are the best free video streaming services?
There are over a dozen free streaming video services, many of which offer a similar mix of classic TV shows and not-so-recent movies.
Let’s take a look at some of the most popular services.
1. Crunch
Let’s start alphabetically with Crackle. This service offers on-demand programming in a variety of genres, mostly movies, but also older TV shows. You’ll find series like Barney Miller, Benson, Charlie’s Angels, The Facts of Life, Fantasy Island, The Partridge Family and Starsky & Hutch.
The movies include a good mix of classics and new fare, including the original Spider Man trilogy, plus many movies you’ve probably never heard of.
2. IMDb Television
IMDb TV is owned by Amazon and complements the company’s paid Prime Video service. IMDb TV offers both on-demand content and a “live” channel guide.
It also offers more well-known content than on some other free services, as well as programming not available on other services. This includes more popular (but still older) movies, as well as TV series like Chicago Fire, Desperate Housewives, Little House on the Prairie, Lost, Murder She Wrote, Night Court, and Spenser for Hire. IMDb TV is also the exclusive US home of the popular Canadian comedy series Corner Gas.
3. Complex
Plex is one of the newest players in the free streaming space. Best known for its media server software, Plex offers both on-demand and “live” streams displayed in a program guide format. Programming includes over 200 individual programming channels, including movies, TV shows, documentaries, reality shows, news, sports, and music-only channels.
Note that few offers are exclusive to this service. Instead, Plex gets much of its programming from Crackle, Shout TV, and other similar services.
4. Pluto TV
Pluto TV is owned by Paramount, so it includes content from all of that company’s properties, including the CBS and Viacom networks. Pluto was one of the first services to organize its programming into “live” channels, displayed in a traditional channel grid that you can scroll through.
Pluto TV currently offers over 250 channels, as well as on-demand programming. These are organized by categories such as:
- Movies
- Entertainment
- News and Reviews
- Reality
- criminality
… and much more.
It even has channels devoted to specific shows, such as Smoke, Happy Days, and star trek. Due to its Paramount/CBS/Viacom connection, Pluto TV has arguably the widest selection of quality programming of any free streaming service.
5. The Roku Channel
Pluto TV and The Roku Channel are the recognized leaders in free streaming video. The Roku Channel started out as a service for users of Roku’s streaming media players and TVs. However, it is now available on most other media players and TV platforms (including Amazon Fire TV and Google Chromecast devices), as well as on the web for computer users.
Programming is a mix of on-demand and “live” channels, including real live programming from AccuWeather, ABC News, Cheddar, Fox News, NBC News and other services. It also offers “Roku Originals”, which are programs obtained from the now-defunct abbreviated video service Quibi.
6. Tubi
Tubi relies a bit more on movies than other free services, although these movies tend to lean towards older and lesser-known ones. Tubi also includes a variety of TV series such as Anger Management, The Bachelorette, Dark Shadows, The Masked Singer and The Nanny.
Tubi also has a decent selection of news and sports, including beIN Sports Extra, Fox Sports, MLB Channel, NFL Channel, and Stadium. Programming is on demand, with some “live” channels.
7. Xumo
The final free service we’ll mention today is Xumo, which offers “live” channel programming in a traditional channel guide as well as on-demand programming. Xumo bills itself as the place for movies and offers a rich lineup of movies from Crackle, FilmRise, Shout TV, and other sources.
Like Pluto TV, The Roku Channel and others, Xumo also offers a good selection of live news (from ABC News, CBS News, Cheddar, Fox News, NBC News, Newsy and others), as well as sports.
Choose the best free video streaming service for you
These seven free streaming services offer a variety of programming that should satisfy any viewer’s appetite. Yes, they have a lot of old TV shows and movies, but there are some great things to watch. And, since they’re totally free, you don’t have to limit yourself to just one or two of these services. You can watch as many as you want on any device you use today.
When you want to stream videos without blowing your budget, these free services are the way to go!
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